Short-term memory and learning in children with fetal alcohol syndrome/effects

Abstract

Short-term memory function and learning in children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Effects (FAS/E) was examined. Participants included twenty school-aged children diagnosed with either Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects (mean age = 11.13 years) and twenty normal controls (mean age = 11.11 years) matched on age and gender, all of which were Native American and lived on a rural reservation. All participants completed nine core subtests of the Wide Range Assessment of Memory and Learning. Results indicated that children with FAS/E performed significantly more poorly than controls on eight of the nine memory measures, including Number/Letter Memory, Sentence Memory, Story Memory, Finger Windows, Design Memory, Verbal Learning, Visual Learning, and Sound-Symbol. No statistically significant group differences were found on Picture Memory. Subsequent discriminant function analyses revealed that scores on the WRAML subtest provided useful discriminating information for children with FAS/E and controls. Scores on Story Memory, Design Memory, and Number/Letter Memory most strongly discriminated between groups. Implications of these results are discussed and recommendations for further research are provided.